More Adults Sharing Intimate Photos, Despite Risks [AUDIO]

Most of us have heard the warnings, but many people continue to share intimate and risqué info with our significant others.

Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

Findings released from Macafee Security's 2014 Love, Relationship, and Technology survey find that while 98 percent of respondents use their mobile device to take photos, 54 percent send or receive intimate content including video, photos, emails and messages.

However, many people fail to realize how easy it is for that info to end up in the wrong hands.

"Their lives are turned upside down. It results in broken marriages, lost jobs, inability to get a new job. Sometimes people are kicked out of school," said Robert Siciliano, Macafee Online Security Expert.

Macafee has found that 13 percent of adults have had their personal content leaked to others without their permission. Additionally, one in 10 ex-partners have threatened that they would expose risqué photos of their ex online. According to the study, these threats have been carried out nearly 60% of the time.

"When more than 50 percent of relationships eventually break off, those who feel disenchanted are sharing their exes intimate photos," Siciliano said.

Additionally, only 69 percent of those surveyed are securing their smartphone with a password or passcode, a 30 percentage point increase from last year's result.

"They're losing their devices or they're being stolen; and when they are those devices aren't password protected. Allowing anyone to get their hands on the information," warned Siciliano.

However, 46 percent of U.S. adults still share their passwords with another individual (down from 54 percent), while 42 percent use the same password across multiple devices, increasing the likelihood that these mobile devices will become hacked.

Siciliano warns to never share your passwords, especially with significant others. He also advises not to use the same password for multiple accounts and make sure your password is difficult to figure out, employing combinations of uppercase, lowercase and numbers when possible.